Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰

CO State Senate Majority Whip. Army Vet, Husband, Father, YIMBY, Pro-LVT, Pro UBI, Steiner-Vallentyne and Matt Zwolinski stan.

[Maj. (Ret.) Richard Ojeda @Ojeda4America]

I spent 24 years wearing this nations uniform.

Do you know what nobody ever told me?

That if I worked hard enough and sacrificed enough, someday my military career could be decided by the political opinion of a Fox News pundit playing Defense Secretary.

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

This is heartbreaking. I met Sarah through her work in the land use and harm reduction spaces, and she has been a lion at pushing the state to do more in both areas and to get out of the way of cities who are trying to plug the gaps themselves. Wishing her nothing but the best.

[Kyle Clark @KyleClark]

NEW: Denver City Councilwoman At-Large Sarah Parady, a progressive, is resigning effective August 5 for health reasons.

"It is devastating to me to have reached this point," Parady said in an email. "Because I love being here working for us as a collective every single day."

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

There’s lots I disagree with Massie on. But he took on the status quo, exposed corruption, and led with integrity. It’s a damn shame that those qualities are valued anymore. They’re the only values that can make a country great.

[Justin Amash @justinamash]

Proud of my friend @RepThomasMassie. To everyone who supported him: thank you. Never give up. The fight for liberty is only beginning.

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

Courageous move by @SenKirkmeyer . Credit where it’s due.

[Jacob Rubashkin @JacobRubashkin]

Even Republican GOP gubernatorial frontrunner Barb Kirkmeyer is gently dismissing herself from Polis’ decision

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

The commutation of Peters’ sentence, out of fealty to a tyrannical president, to appease his quest for political vengeance, further erodes justice and endangers future free elections. It is a cowardly betrayal of all who have fought to preserve American freedoms.

[Kyle Clark @KyleClark]

NEW: Colorado Gov Jared Polis (D) is commuting the sentence of Tina Peters, making her parole eligible next month.

[Justin Amash @justinamash]

Fetterman is what you get if you combine the worst policy positions of Democrats and Republicans. He’s a true heir to Hillary Clinton.

[Jon Caldara @JonCaldara]

We the people of Colorado no longer control our own state constitution. I found this out the hard way. #copolitics #coleg #cogov

In Colorado, a government for, by, and of the people is a fib.

We lowly citizens no longer have much of a say in altering our own state constitution. Even though that seems to violate the whole meaning of our constitution in the first place.

Like the US Constitution, Colorado’s constitution contains a Bill of Rights making clear we are the ones who empower the state government, not the other way around.

Check out the first two of these rights:

First — All political power is vested in and derived from the people; all government, of right, originates from the people…

Second — The people of this state have the sole and exclusive right of governing themselves, as a free, sovereign and independent state; and to alter and abolish their constitution…

Did you catch that? We the people have the sole and exclusive right to alter our constitution. It used to be true, too.

We used to alter our constitution through the initiative and referendum process.

Without that process, we would not have limits on governmental power. Laws reining in the legislature could never pass a vote by those same politicians. They’d never vote for open meetings laws, term limits, the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, ethics laws, and so much more.

Recently, when the legislature arrogantly exempted themselves from open meetings laws, it started a chain reaction I’ve never witnessed in all my decades in politics.

Independence Institute, which I run, helped bring together nearly 50 highly diverse organizations that are usually at each other’s throats. We all shared a common concern: government in Colorado is turning opaque.

Open records are getting harder to access, open meetings are closing. The “people’s” work is being hidden from the people.

And when I say organizations from all over the political spectrum worked together, I’m not exaggerating: Independence Institute, the ACLU, Heidi Ganahl’s conservative Rocky Mountain Voice, the progressive Colorado Times Recorder, Colorado Public Radio, League of Women Voters, Colorado Press Association, Colorado Broadcasters Association, Common Cause, Colorado Black Women for Action, and many, many more.

‘
Over a year-and-a-half of work we crafted a constitutional reform based on what many other states already have, called “Right to Know.” It’s simple: a fundamental right for the people to access public records and government deliberations, with reasonable exceptions.

But you won’t see this proposed amendment on your fall ballot.

The normally sober state Title Board voted 2–1 to block it. The appointees of Secretary of State Jena Griswold and Attorney General Phil Weiser voted against you being able to vote on governmental transparency.

Were they ordered to do so? I’ll let others speculate.

Their argument was that your “right to know” the affairs of government isn’t a single subject, and only “single subjects” may go to the ballot.

Legislators’ bills must also have a single subject. The difference is they get to decide for themselves whether a bill qualifies. By contrast, we “the people” must get permission from an unelected board. A set of rules for them; a different set for us.

The powerful Title Board said our amendment was too broad.

I countered that the state constitution is supposed to contain broad amendments. That didn’t matter.

Our team pointed to existing rights guaranteed by Colorado’s constitution, like freedom of speech, religion and the right to keep and bear arms. I asked if we were bringing one of those rights as a citizen initiative today, would it pass “single subject” muster as they now interpret it?

They essentially said no.

By their interpretation, such basic rights as freedom of speech or religion might be too broad and vague to be considered a single subject.

We considered appealing the Title Board’s bizarre decision to the Colorado Supreme Court, but on the advice of lawyers from across the political spectrum, we decided not to.

The high court has shown little interest in expanding the public’s right to know what’s going on in their judicial branch.

So now, hiding behind the “single subject” rule, altering our constitution to include fundamental rights — like speech, religion, or even a right to know the affairs of government — can be denied to the very people who are supposed to be the government.

Some things you can’t make up.

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

https://t.co/3XxAsk7WgI.

[James 𝕏ond @james_xond]

Can anyone pinpoint the exact moment when everything in society started getting noticeably worse?

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

Basic income works, and does so without the administrative overhead or paternalism of government bureaucracy.

[The Colorado Sun @ColoradoSun]

Basic income programs remain popular in Colorado despite steep challenges
https://t.co/VusFvI6fD4

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

@Dan_Gehrke_ @joewrote Dan, you very much want the government in people’s lives all the time, as long as it’s to control people who don’t share your beliefs.

[Joe Wrote @joewrote]

Riley Gaines and Libs of TikTok are complaining about medical bills. David French says adopting a Black child opened his eyes to systemic racism. Laid-off TPUSA employees say workers need stronger protections.

Conservatism is the rejection of empathy for others. Once an issue affects them personally, they adopt the progressive position.

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

I’m convinced that there are congressmen, like this, who get into name-calling matches that end with “I know you are, but what am I” at the Capitol cafeteria.

[Congressman Brandon Gill @RepBrandonGill]

Today I asked an abortion advocate what her favorite method of abortion is.

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

Willfully retreating from our foundational freedoms is a moral failure to meet the most critical challenge of this moment.

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

The refusal to address the rapid advancement of unconstitutional spying on American citizens by an increasingly authoritarian police state has been the most disappointing thing I’ve seen in my time in office.

[The Colorado Sun @ColoradoSun]

As AI license plate readers spread across Colorado, grassroots movements push back
https://t.co/029NTsOO5t

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

https://t.co/NixSFNvZfs

Excellent legislation by…. Lauren Boebert?!?!

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

@libbychambe “After nominating supposedly safe candidates, who lost this seat three cycles in a row, Dems are likely to nominate a riskier candidate. That’s a risky choice. I am very smart.” - Chris Cillizza

[Congresswoman Yassamin Ansari @RepYassAnsari]

I do not appreciate anyone - Democrat or Republican - taking this moment to make TACO jokes to say Trump “chickened out.”

The president was threatening genocide against 90 million Iranians.

I’m grateful there’s a ceasefire & scores of innocent people didn’t die tonight.

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

@croptopsllc … Because y’all are abolitionists, or because it’s unrealistic that barrons of industry would ever be held accountable for their crimes?

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

@GovofCO we should annex all of New Mexico. All chiles could (should) rightfully be Colorado chiles.

End the chile wars.

Win Nobel Peace Prize.

Make POTUS jealous.

[Governor Jared Polis @GovofCO]

The Santa Fe area will be a great addition to Colorado. It is no secret that Colorado and New Mexico are two of the best places to live, work, and play, and we would be thrilled to welcome our friends in Northern New Mexico to our great state and to protect them from aggression from Texas. Let’s be serious, there’s no way that Texas could handle actually annexing this land. We can protect the rich culture, including the arts and restaurant scenes in these communities, while also mutually strengthening our economies and avoiding spreading Texas’s failed leadership any further. Not to mention the fact that this will mean more Pueblo chiles for all. This isn’t like Trump trying to take over Greenland; it’s totally different and definitely legal. I look forward to building on Colorado's past 150 years by growing our state in this next chapter. The partition of New Mexico will go down in history as a big win for Colorado.

[Senator Nick Hinrichsen 🇺🇸🔰 @NickForCO]

Really sucks having someone maliciously lie about what’s actually in your bill, eh @RepHartsook ?